Winter storm dumping snow on Maritime provinces

Waterloo Region Record

HALIFAX - The Maritime provinces are being blasted by a winter storm that has shutdown air traffic at Halifax International Airport and is also causing flight cancellations and delays at St. John’s International Airport.

Environment Canada says Nova Scotia will get the worst of the nor’easter, with more than 40 centimetres of snow expected in parts of the province by later today.

New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island will see around 15 to 30 centimetres of snow.

Wind warnings are in effect for northern Nova Scotia, with winds expected to gust to 90 km/h beginning this morning.

The storm has grounded all air traffic at Halifax International Airport.

“We don’t have any flights coming and going right now — airlines started cancelling late last evening in anticipation of the storm,” said airport spokesman Peter Spurway.

“We’re looking at a noon to 2 p.m. time when things may start to move depending on the shift in conditions which is anticipated,” he added.

The storm is also blamed for several flight cancellations and delays at St. John’s International Airport

Travellers are advised to check on the status of their flights before heading to the airport.

The low pressure system is expected to be south of Nova Scotia early today and will intensify as it tracks eastward up the province’s Atlantic coast towards Cape Breton.

It will then make its way to Newfoundland and Labrador, where a band of heavy snow is forecast to cross the central and western parts of the island later today.

Environment Canada meteorologist Jean-Marc Couturier said higher than normal water levels with rough pounding surf are expected along the Atlantic coast this morning.

“We are talking about a major low pressure area, so when you have low pressures like this, with the wind and the wave action that it creates... definitely coastal communities should be on the lookout for pounding surf,” he warned.